Curtis F. Robinson M.D. Inc. v. MultiPlan, Inc.

Background

The Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation considered motions under 28 U.S.C. § 1407 to centralize related lawsuits. The litigation consisted of six actions pending in three districts, along with eighteen potentially related actions pending in two districts. The actions concerned alleged conduct to fix, suppress, and stabilize reimbursement rates paid to healthcare providers for out-of-network healthcare services, allegedly in violation of the Sherman Act.

The parties' positions

The responding parties agreed that the actions should proceed together in one court but disagreed about the procedural mechanism and transferee district. Some plaintiffs supported centralization in the Northern District of Illinois. Plaintiffs in eighteen actions and potentially related actions supported or did not oppose centralization in the Southern District of New York, and plaintiffs in fourteen of those actions also did not oppose transfer under 28 U.S.C. § 1404 to that district. The defendants preferred transfer under § 1404 to the Northern District of Illinois and alternatively supported centralization there.

The defendants argued that transfer under § 1404 could make centralization under § 1407 unnecessary. The panel rejected that argument because the defendants had moved to transfer the Northern District of California action but had not filed a similar motion concerning the Southern District of New York actions. The defendants also intended to wait for a ruling on a motion to dismiss before moving to transfer the first-filed Southern District of New York action. The panel therefore found that centralization was the fastest way to coordinate all related actions.

Ruling

The panel found that the actions shared common factual questions and that centralization in the Northern District of Illinois would promote convenience, efficient pretrial proceedings, and consistent rulings, including on class certification. It ordered that the actions listed on Schedule A and pending outside the Northern District of Illinois be transferred to that district and, with the receiving court's consent, assigned to the Honorable Matthew F. Kennelly for coordinated or consolidated pretrial proceedings.

The opinion states that Judge Matthew F. Kennelly and Judge Karen K. Caldwell did not participate in the decision. The order's header identifies M. David Weisman as the judge, while the transfer assignment is to Judge Matthew F. Kennelly.